Beauty
by Jinko
Summary: Arthur stumbles upon Merlin's magic, only to find it beautiful.


**Author's note: Yeah, so I wanted to do a few one-shots because I can't do them and I wanna learn how. So this is the first in about fifteen that I have planned.**

**This also happens to be my first Arthur/Merlin fic that I'm posting. **

**Disclaimer: I'm not profiting from my hobby.**

**Beauty**

**-Jinko-**

They'd been at war for far too long now, Arthur realised, as the body of one of his men was taken by him on a stretcher. That man certainly wasn't going home with them when the war between Camelot and Mercia was over.

The war had started when sorcerers of the Mercian Court took a wrong turn and ended up in Camelot. Uther had them executed without a second thought, and brought on the wrath of Mercia for it. Arthur had ridden out the moment he knew that the battle had started and took all of his knights with him.

Merlin followed.

If there was anyone Arthur hadn't wanted to ride out with him, it was Merlin. His bumbling manservant was useless with a sword and Arthur knew he'd spend more time watching Merlin's back than his own. He growled at Merlin for a few days and gave him the most unpleasant jobs he could think of (not really-he didn't want Merlin dealing with the dead bodies or the soldiers who'd lost a limb. The younger man wasn't meant for the battlefield and he wanted to shield him from the true horrors of it), but soon cooled down. He didn't want to be angry with Merlin. The boy only wanted to help. He wanted to be by Arthur's side.

But Arthur was scared of what Merlin would see if they were to stay side by side.

Arthur had never been in such a war before. He'd fought against many men in tournaments, and even when he was attacked by bandits or the like, but a war was something new to him. It was always a possibility, but never something he wanted to fight.

Killing wasn't new to him, either. When a life had to be taken, Arthur wouldn't not do it.

However, on the battlefield, Arthur took lives left, right and centre, not because the men deserved it, but because that's how wars were fought.

And every night, he'd stumble back to camp, into his tent, covered in the bloody of at least twenty men. Worse yet, it was Merlin who washed it off him each night. It was Merlin who washed his clothes, fixed his armour and sharpened his sword.

It terrified Arthur that Merlin would see that he was nothing more than a killing monster, just like the wild boars and the magical creatures they'd hunted over the years.

But no, Merlin did what was expected of him. He washed the blood from Arthur's tunic. He sharpened and polished the sword so that it didn't look like it had ripped through so many men the day before. He made it look like Arthur hadn't needed the shield to protect his life.

And when Arthur returned to the tent with his own injury, Merlin was there, by his side, patching him up without a single word. He tended to Arthur's every scrape and bruise as if each graze could be life-threatening. Gaius had taught Merlin much, Arthur was shocked to discover.

All this was done without an order. The manservant that was once recognised as the most useless servant in the castle was now living to make sure Arthur's every need was met. At first, it appealed to Arthur, but then he realised how little they were speaking. The playful taunts that were once there had disappeared. Merlin did what he had to without complaint. He kept to himself, having been snapped at a month earlier for trying to joke and lighten Arthur's mood. Arthur secretly regretted telling Merlin to keep his mouth shut.

At the end of each day, they'd ride back with the survivors and get themselves cleaned up before a handful of soldiers returned to the bloodied battlefield to recover the dead bodies. It was a truce of sorts between the knights of Camelot and the knights of Mercia. Neither faction would attack when the dead were being dragged back to camp. Both sides were human enough to understand that the pawns in the war deserved a proper burial.

While this happened every night at the same time, Arthur was in his tent with Merlin, cleaning up and figuring out what he was going to say to the remaining troops to keep their hopes up. When the soldiers came back, they had a meal in silence to honour the dead before they burned the bodies. The stench of burning flesh was enough to make Arthur's stomach spin. He knew that Merlin hated it. Merlin would vomit at the smell for the first fortnight.

Despite this, though, the tent never smelt horrible. Arthur noticed that Merlin would occasionally bring flowers in, but he was certain a few daisies wouldn't be enough to cover the scent of blood and burnt bodies. But he never asked about it. He was too tired.

What shocked him the most, though, was how Merlin helped him cope. Arthur couldn't have been any worse to the other man, but Merlin was always there for Arthur. They mightn't have been talking, but that didn't stop Merlin from knowing exactly what Arthur needed the moment he registered the need. Sometimes, Arthur didn't even realise he was needing anything before Merlin popped up by his side to give him something. Every now and then, Merlin would put extra berries he'd found during the day in Arthur's rations, or he'd be there with an extra coat for warmth. He'd be the comforting presence when Arthur had lost what he was going to say to his knights and he knew when Arthur needed an extra swig of alcohol to make the night easier.

But it was the nightmares that Merlin helped out with the most. Having seen and done what he'd seen and done that day, it was guaranteed that Arthur's sleep would be plagued with the most horrible of dreams. He must have been violent in his sleep those nights, because he'd once woken to find Merlin kneeling beside him, speaking softly to him, with his hand on Arthur's forehead. The words Merlin spoke weren't in English, and the colour left his face the moment he'd noticed Arthur was awake, but he continued with what he was saying until Arthur was soothed and ready for another attempt at sleep. Just before his eyes slid shut, he saw a flash of blue light, followed by Merlin's bright smile.

"Sleep well, Arthur," Merlin had whispered to him, and Arthur had done just that.

It happened at least two more times the following week, and Arthur couldn't help but wonder what the light was and what the words Merlin was saying were. He mentioned it to no one, realising they'd instantly think it was magic. That was the last thing he wanted to do. If rumours were to get out that Prince Arthur's manservant was a sorcerer, the entire camp would explode with anger and fear.

So Arthur kept it to himself and kept an eye on Merlin when he could. When they travelled to the next location (moving forward as they continued to push Mercia's attack back, of course) he would watch how Merlin packed their belongings. He watched how Merlin dealt with his sword and his armour and even went as far as to watch him when he was eating.

He didn't see a flicker of magic during these moments, but he was certain that Merlin was casting a spell on him at night to make him sleep better. The nightmares were disappearing bit by bit and he would wake up feeling more refreshed than ever.

However, his paranoia about Merlin's _skills_ was soon pushed back as they set up camp near a river. For so long, they'd camped at stagnant lakes, which just added to the putrid smell that followed them around. A fresh river, however, gave them plenty of food and the best water they'd had since leaving Camelot. They didn't ride out that first day. The men instead played in the flowing water, washing themselves and splashing each other like they were children. It was the first time in a long time that they relaxed and Arthur enjoyed every moment of it. Of course, they took turns in keeping guard, just to make sure Mercia wasn't going to prey on their day of weakness, but Mercia seemed to need that day to rethink their strategies.

So they split up into two groups. Arthur was in the group to stand guard for the first half of the day, while Merlin was in the other. The prince had been a little upset that Merlin had chosen the opposite group, even after learning that Arthur was standing guard, but didn't say anything. If anything, it was perhaps a worse decision on Merlin's behalf-not because Arthur wanted to be there with him, talking and laughing with him, but because Arthur spent more time watching Merlin splash around in the water with a dopey grin on his face. He barely turned his head in the opposite direction to look out for any movement from the enemy. It was worse when the men realised they had drenched the clothes they'd have to stand in later and therefore took them off to continue playing.

Arthur had been naked in front of Merlin more times than he could remember. The other man often dressed and undressed the prince, as was his job. But Arthur had never seen Merlin naked before. So to see him strip down to nothing was a small shock.

Firstly, he couldn't help but notice how thin Merlin was. It was natural to lose weight while on war rations, but surely it wasn't natural to see one's ribs like that. He wondered just how much weight Merlin had lost on the tour.

Secondly, he realised with something that had him turning away abruptly, he was slightly aroused by Merlin. And that had ruined watching Merlin being happy.

For the rest of the day, Arthur had Merlin in his mind, despite his greatest wishes to push him out. After the second group had their time in the river, they all settled down for the best dinner they'd had since leaving Camelot. Arthur sat with his men, laughing with them as they ate the fish and the deer they managed to catch earlier. The knights sat together and their servants were further away. It meant that Merlin wasn't allowed to sit with him.

Once dinner finished, they went back to their tents while the night guards took their positions. Merlin helped Arthur out of his clothes and into his night clothes. As Arthur slipped into his bedroll, Merlin cleaned up afterwards.

"Try to sleep, Sire," Merlin suggested. Arthur rolled over so he was looking at Merlin.

"Did you have a good day?" Arthur asked conversationally. He watched as Merlin's back straightened, completely surprised that Arthur had said anything to him at all.

With a smile, Merlin turned around to Arthur. "Yes, I did. It was almost like we weren't at war right now."

"I know." They fell silent and Arthur just watched as Merlin worked. He was still clumsy, which made the corner of Arthur's lips rise, but he worked quickly and silently. Again, Arthur didn't see a hint of magic, but he felt it was there. "I think I'll be able to sleep without your help tonight, Merlin."

This time, Merlin flinched. Even though he had his back to Arthur, the manservant nodded his head and continued with his work.

Nothing more was said.

After a while, Arthur started to doze lightly. He didn't dream at all, which was a blessing, but felt it more than he heard it when Merlin got up and left the tent. It roused Arthur and he quickly got up to follow the servant, who he was now certain was a sorcerer.

It wasn't hard to see now that Merlin was a wizard. He'd gotten so far ahead of Arthur that the prince couldn't actually see him, but the trees themselves glowed lightly, as if they were marking the track Merlin had taken. As Arthur passed the trees, he could feel the magic in the air, but it was different to anything else he'd ever felt. It was as warm as Merlin's hand against his forehead and tickled his skin through to his stomach.

Arthur noticed that the night guards conveniently were nowhere to be found. He looked in every direction, but couldn't see them. He guessed Merlin dealt with them to stop them from realising what he was doing. It didn't bother Arthur as much as it should have, but the magic felt too _good_ for it to be evil.

And it was far too beautiful. As he walked further along Merlin's path, he saw how the flowers had bloomed, despite the time of night, and sparkled at him.

They were leading him towards the water, and Arthur didn't even think to deviate.

When he arrived, he found Merlin sitting on the grass by the river, with his back facing the track. The water was shining brightly, as if it were stained glass with a candle behind it. Arthur had never seen such a shade of blue before.

He stepped up so he was directly behind Merlin, gaining his attention. Socially, it was wrong for Merlin to be sitting in his presence, but seeing as Merlin could light up the entire forest, Arthur wasn't going to say anything.

"I'm sorry," Merlin said softly without turning to look at Arthur.

"Why?"

Merlin could have come up with a thousand answers for the question. He was sorry that he was everything Arthur was against. He was sorry that this meant that their friendship would change; that Arthur now had the responsibility of his secret and had to decide what to do with it; that he'd lied to him; that he was acting like a hypocrite; that he'd woken him…

"How many answers do you want?"

Arthur moved so that he was standing next to Merlin and watched as Merlin's eyes shone gold for a moment as the tips of the grass lit up like the trees. He felt the magic wave through him, like Morgana's dresses brushing over his skin, but internally.

"Why are you out here, doing this now?"

"That's the only question you're asking?" Merlin's eyes lowered and he ran his hand over the glistening grass. The tufts changed colour, glowing purple.

"For now."

Merlin sighed and wrapped his arms around his knees, bringing his thighs against his chest. "I needed to get this out of my body. If I hadn't, it would have built up and it would have exploded. I'd much rather do this here than have all your knights see that I'm a sorcerer."

"I understand why you didn't tell me," Arthur said honestly. He'd be obligated to kill Merlin for such a crime.

"You'll kill me for this, won't you?"

With a heavy sigh, Arthur lowered himself down to sit next to Merlin. "No. I should, but I won't."

Shocked, Merlin turned his head to eye Arthur. The prince was staring back at him. "Why not? I'm committing a crime against Camelot…"

"There's no proof that you've used magic in Camelot," Arthur argued. He reached down and started to play with the purple grass.

Merlin scoffed. "We'll just completely neglect all the times I've saved you in Camelot, then?"

The statement had Arthur thinking. "That would explain how I've managed to save Camelot while unconscious…"

A small chuckle came from Merlin and Arthur put his hand against the side of Merlin's head and pushed. The thin servant tipped over, laughing openly. When Merlin righted himself, Arthur grabbed him by his shoulders and forced him against his side, tucking Merlin's head between Arthur's own head and shoulder.

"You've got a lot to explain, Merlin," Arthur told him, but he didn't hold an angry tone.

Merlin's right hand slipped down to cover Arthur's. "It seems you might have a bit to tell me, too."

With that, Arthur nuzzled Merlin's hair. "I'm gonna work on that one. It's something I just realised a few hours ago."

"When you were perving on me."

"I do have the right to kill you, Merlin."

"And I can turn you into a toad."

Arthur paused. "You can do that?"

Merlin's chuckle didn't confirm or deny the claim.

"Merlin?"

-


End file.
